PMI Denver Takes the National Sputum Bowl Title

DENVER – Pima Medical Institute’s Denver Sputum Bowl team has once again taken the national title, winning in Las Vegas on Dec. 11. They beat out 19 other student teams during the three-day academic competition.

It’s the fourth time the Denver campus has won the national Sputum Bowl. It also won in 2008, 2006 and 2005. Last year, the Las Vegas campus took the national title, and in 2010, Denver campus’ faculty won the practitioner national Sputum Bowl competition.

Three other PMI teams from Las Vegas, Tucson and the renegade team from Denver, also advanced during the competition, beating several teams.

The Denver team included respiratory therapy students Ryan Kelley, John Bochenek, Andrew Reiss and Alyssa Hamilton.

Sputum Bowl is a Jeopardy-style game where students must quickly and accurately answer questions that range from anatomy and physiology to mechanical breathing and disease.

“We have highly motivated students that are very competitive,” said Tammi Keeton, Respiratory Therapy Program Director for the Denver campus. Keeton helped the students study for the state and national competitions.

“We practiced and conducted scrimmages once a week. We feel this really helps them all around. It prepares them for their national board exams and gets them comfortable with the incredible amount of information that we deliver to them each day.”

The Sputum Bowl is an annual part of the American Association for Respiratory Care’s (AARC) yearly congress. It features the latest in technology and breakthroughs in care. To learn more about the AARC, visit its website at www.aarc.org.

In addition to winning, Pima Medical Institute was also the focus of two local news stories this year during the competition. KNPR, Las Vegas’ local NPR station, interviewed the Las Vegas campus’ Respiratory Therapy Program Director Anthony Everidge, Clinical Director of Education, Aimee Barnes, and Las Vegas Sputum Bowl team member, Christopher Andresky. That interview can be found on KNPR’s website.

“Our respiratory therapy faculty are so proud of all our students that participated in the Sputum Bowl this year and every year,” Keeton said. “It isn’t easy to make time to study and practice as much as they do. I think they are all very special people.”

About Pima Medical InstitutePima Medical Institute is a private, accredited school dedicated to provide students classroom studies paired with real-world training at medical facilities. Established in 1972, Pima Medical Institute helps students become career ready, focusing exclusively on health care professions, including medical, dental, veterinary and nursing fields. Curriculum includes certificate, associate degree and bachelor’s degree programs, ranging from nursing, medical assistant and radiology technician to veterinary assistant and dental hygienist.

Pima Medical Institute operates 16 campuses as well as an online division. The medical career college has a presence in eight western states with ground locations in Albuquerque, N.M.; Tucson, Phoenix and Mesa, Ariz.; Denver and Colorado Springs, Colo.; Seattle and Renton, Wash.; Las Vegas, N.V.; Houston and El Paso, Texas; Chula Vista, Calif.; and Dillon, Mont. For more information and a complete list of programs offered at each campus, visit pmi.edu or call 1-888-442-5998.